{"id":8278,"date":"2023-10-17T13:50:21","date_gmt":"2023-10-17T13:50:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/roydadnaft.ir\/English\/?p=8278"},"modified":"2023-10-17T13:50:21","modified_gmt":"2023-10-17T13:50:21","slug":"some-of-lost-european-gas-demand-may-be-gone-for-good-vitol-ceo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/roydadnaft.ir\/English\/8278\/","title":{"rendered":"Some of lost European gas demand may be gone for good – Vitol CEO"},"content":{"rendered":"

RoydadNaft – <\/a><\/span>\u00a0The chief executive of Vitol, the world’s top independent energy trader, said on Tuesday that some of the lost demand for gas in Europe following a recent spike in prices may be gone for good.<\/p>\n

“Gas and power had a terrible year for demand (last year) And it continues to be very difficult in Europe … on the industrial side because of the damage over the last few months of high prices,” Russel Hardy told the Energy Intelligence Forum in London.<\/p>\n

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“We can expect some of that lost demand to stay lost forever,” he added.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Global gas prices leapt to all-time highs last year after Russia cut its gas supply to Europe, leading the region to import record amounts of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and slash demand, especially for industry.<\/p>\n

Before its invasion of Ukraine, Russia sent around 155 billion cubic metres (bcm) of gas to Europe each year, mostly via pipelines, according to European Union figures.<\/p>\n

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In 2022, piped gas imports to the EU dropped to 60 bcm. This year, the EU expects them to fall to 20 bcm.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Some analysts say the price of reduced energy use could be a permanent contraction of industrial activity.<\/p>\n

Europe’s biggest economy Germany is expected to shrink this quarter as industry is in recession, according to the country’s central bank.<\/p>\n

Energy Aspects estimates 8% of the 2017-21 average industrial gas demand in Belgium, Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, the Netherlands and Spain may be gone for good by 2024.<\/p>\n

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Hardy said the conflict in the Middle East would probably have an impact on Egypt and in turn create LNG loading issues.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Supply fears have grown in Europe after\u00a0Israel instructed operator Chevron\u00a0to halt natural gas exports through a major subsea pipeline between Israel and Egypt.<\/p>\n

Last year, Vitol sent about nine million metric tons of LNG to Europe, three times its 2021 figure of about 3 million tons, Hardy added.<\/p>\n

The two other speakers on the panel – the CEO of trading house Gunvor, Torbj\u00f6rn T\u00f6rnqvist, and the head of oil trading at Trafigura, Ben Luckock – missed the event after climate protesters blocked the entrance to the conference.<\/p>\n

Updated on